Selective gear transmission por calcttlating machines



Oct. 30, 1928.

E. C. WALTER SELECTIVE GEAR TRANSMISSION FOR CALCULATING MACHINES Filed April 21, 1925 gmmm Edward all affair um-ran STATES PATENT or Puma! ca. so, 1928 1,689,983 Flea.

EDWARD CLAZTON'WALTIB 'OF ORANGE, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOB' TO THE ELLIOTT- IISHIB comm, 01' NEW YORK, 11'. Y., A CORPORATION-OI DELAWARE.

morn: our. TBANBIISBION FOB CALCULATING MACHINES.

Application fled April 21, 1285'. Serial Io. 24,770.

This invention relates to'a selective mechanism for calculating machines, of the type in which the indicating wheels are rotated by selecting mechanism which is set by keys and is rated by a crank or other motor.

0 object of the invention is to rovlde a machine of this character with efliclent selectin mechanism occupying a'mlnimum of latera space to permit a minimum spacing of the indicating wheels and 0 erated or set by a series of number keys, eac of which operates or sets a single selecting member to secure the full value of the key in the computa- 'tion. I

To the accomplishment of the stated objects and others subordinate thereto, a preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an elevation of an index wheel, its setting and operating mechanism and .a series of number ke s, the connection between which and the setting mechanism is more or less diagrammatic.

Figure 2 is a view at right angles to Figure 1 and Figure 3 is a dia ammatic view of the intermediate gear an the selectors.

1 indicates an indicatin wheel mounted on a shaft 2 and associated wlth a gear 3, spaced to secure a movement of the index wheel 1, which will advance the di its 4 on the periphcry of the index wheel be ore a sight opening in the casing of the machine in the usual way.

Parallel with the shaft 2 are a pair of selector shafts 5 and 6, which may be, and preferably are, driven from a common source of power, as, for instance, a crank 7 on an operating shaft 8, havin a gear 9 meshed with gears 10 and 11 on t e shafts 5 and 6. The arrangement issuch that the shafts 5 and 6 always .rotatein the same direction relative to each other, but may be rotated in op osite directions for addition and subtraction y rotating the handle 7 in one direction or the other.

Splined on the shafts 5 and 6 are selectors 12 and 13, rotatable with the shafts but slidable thereon to difierent set positions.

The selectors 12 and 13 are cylindrical in form and each has peripheral flanges or'teeth 14.. The teeth of the selector 13 are 4 in number and of raduated lengths, terminatat different istances from the end of the ifector nearest the gear 3. l

By shiftin the selector 13 a single increment to the eft in Figure 1, a single tooth 14 will come into the plane of o oration. That is to say, inthis position 0 the selector its rotation will cause a single tooth to engage the gear? and operate the same a single'increment of movement to advance the index wheel from one digit to the next, as, for instance, from 1 to 2 in' addition, or 2 to 1 in subtraction.

A further increment of movement of the selector would present two teeth in operative position and the third and fourth positions will present 3 and 4 teeth in position to 0 rate the gear 3 in an obvious manner.

ese varying degrees of selecting movement of the member 13 are effected by the depression of the first 4 keys -15 of a row or bank of 9 as indicated in the drawing.

I Mechanisms whereby this character of setting movement is imparted to a selecting member by the keys of a calculating machine are well-known in the art. Therefore, as my invention resides in the mounting and movement of the selectors and not in the specific means for moving them, I have indicated the moving mechanism more or less diagrammatically by showing two setting levers 16 and 17 WhlCh, when swung, will move the selectors toward and from the gear 3, connected in any suitable manner with appro riate number keys 15 to secure the desire degree of settingmovement by the operation of a selected key. The selecting mechanism herein claimed 1s designed for use in a well known type of calculating machine in which selectors are moved both singly and in unison the necessary distance in t e required'direction by shifting elements or yokes moved by cams connected to keys of a row or bank. Such a machine is disclosed in Reissue Patent #13341 to Baldwin. The use of the Baldwin key operated selector shifting mechanism is contemplated with such variations of the cam surfaces as will obviously be necessary to secure the described movement of the selectors.

Teeth 14 of the setting member 12, are nine in number, as shown in Figure 3. Five of these teeth terminate in the same plane and are presented in operative position by a single increment or ste of movement of the selecting member. T e last five teeth are graduated in length so that each step of movement of the selector beyond the position in which five teethare effective will bring an additional tooth into operative position until all nine are located in the plane of the gear 3.

In performing calculations, the addition or subtraction of values 1 to 4 is secured by setting the selecting member 13 in any one of four positions by the depression of the appropriate one' of the first our keys. the addition or subtraction of the values 5 to 9 is secured by setting the member 12 by the depression of the appropriate one of the last five keys, that is keys 5 to 9.

Attention is now directed to the fact that while the range of selection is from 1 to 9, it is secured by a maximum of five increments of settin movement of the selecting mechanism. Also, it will be noted that by mounting the setting members on separate shafts, said members move in different planes and their movement may therefore overlap in a manner to permit a very compact arrangement of the parts in comparatively close spacing of the index wheels. Also, it will be noted, as heretofore stated, that these results are secured in a manner to permit any desired selection without the necessity for having anyone key impart a setting movement to more than a sin\ gle selecting element. In other words, there is not, at any time, conjoint action of the selectors to select values 1 to 9. As a result the load on the keys is lighter and more uniform as regards each key, and when compared with that imposed by concurrent setting oftwo selectors for certain values, as in the above noted type of machine. It follows that the load on. the crank, or motor, is also appreciably lessened as willbe clear without further explanation. It will, of course, be

' understood that in a machine of this character the group of elements which has been described is duplicated for each denominational position up to the capacity of the machine.

It is thought that from the foregoing the construction and operation of my selecting mechanism will be clearly understood, but I reserve the right to effect such modifications thereof as may come fairly within the spirit of the invention.

What I claim is 1. A selecting mechanism for calculating machines, including a plurality of selecting members for a single denominational position and having parallel axes.

2. The comblnation with an index wheel, a plurality of selecting members rotatable to operate the index wheel, and disposed out of axial alignment.

3. The combination with an index whee, of plurality of selecting members rotatable to operate the wheel independently of eachother to indicate all values from 1 to 9.

4. The combination with an index wheel, of

Similarly two selecting members rotatable on parallel axes to operate the index wheel, one of said selecting members bein settable in positions to o erate'thedndex wheel for aprogressive num r of digital values and the other member being settable in different positions to operate said Wheel for consecutive values beyond those first named.

5. The combination with an index wheel, of two selecting members, a series of keys representin the values 1 to 9, and means whereby one 0 the selecting members will be settable in four set positions, and whereby the other selecting member may be settable in five set positions.

6. In a selecting mechanism for calculating machines, the combination with parallel shafts, of selecting members mounted on said shafts to select values in the same denominational position.

7. The combination with a series of keys and a denominational member of intermediate selecting mechanism, including a plurality of setting members rotatable about different axes to operate the denominational member, and means for rotating the selecting members.

8. The combination with a gear of parallel shafts and selecting members mounted on the shafts, and settablein different positions to operate the gear for different values.

9. The combination with an index Wheel, of

a gear associated therewith, parallel selector I selector shafts, cylindrical selecting members rotatable with the shafts, and shiftable thereon in opposite directions to different set positions relative to the gear, graduated teeth on the selectin members, means for driving the shafts, and keys for setting the selecting memers.

11. The combination with an index wheel, of a selecting mechanism, including selecting members arranged to operate the index wheel, one for the values 1 to 4, and the other for the values 5 to 9. g

12. The combination with a denominational member operative to accumulate values 1 to 9, of a pair of selectors for differentially controlling operation of said member, -said selectors being independently settable to effect between them accumulation of values 1 to 9 by said member.

In testimony whereof, I afiix my signature.

EDWARD CLAXTON WALTER. 

